The Maasai Intellectual Property Initiative: a 20th-century model for turning assets into income

Abstract

The names and images of indigenous people such as the Maasai, Cherokee and Navajo are used to advance the intangible value of thousands of products from cars to shoes and luxury brand clothing across the globe. The Maasai name or image are used on over 1,000 products. This article highlights a decade of work to enable the Maasai tribe of Kenya and Tanzania, of over 2 million tribal people, to receive sustainable income from the use of their name and image by creating a win-win situation. We describe how the Maasai have been organised into a legal entity called the Maasai Intellectual Property Initiative Trust (MIPI), to own and receive income from their Intellectual Property. Secondly, we describe a definitive strategy to enable the Maasai to grant certification to companies and to license approved users. This atypical model of Fair Trade would enable a sustainable source of revenue to the Maasai who live largely in deep poverty. The strategy is not dissimilar, albeit atypical, to what a well-known individual such as Charlie Chaplin or a product such as Coca Cola would do – own, protect and benefit from their iconic brand that adds value. The initiative has implications for other indigenous people who comprise about 6 per cent of the global population.